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MobileAsset Case Study: Arizona Cardinals

University of Phoenix Stadium is home to the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals and also host to various conventions, trade shows, and concerts each year. The scoreboard production department is responsible for putting on not only the 10+ Cardinals football games each fall but they are also tasked with an additional 100-200 sports, entertainment and trade show events a year.

Nick Heller, scoreboard production assistant at the stadium, works with a crew to run the audio and video boards for all games, shows and events that take place at the stadium. To successfully run these events, Heller and the Scoreboard Production department work with large amounts of expensive production equipment, including television cameras, truss structures, speakers, and microphones.

The cost of the equipment needed to run the scoreboard show for the Arizona Cardinals football games or put on events such as the University of Phoenix graduation ceremony is extremely high. Any given day, $10,000 to $100,000 of equipment will be used depending on the event.

When Heller joined the Cardinals Scoreboard Production department, he quickly discovered that equipment wasn’t being tracked. There was concern that this could lead to lost or stolen equipment. If an item went missing, there wasn’t a sufficient way to fully investigate the items whereabouts because there was no way to determine who had last used it or where it had been used. With such valuable assets, it was imperative to have an asset management system in place to track equipment for loss prevention purposes.

Sometimes there are multiple events in a single day. Heller and his team desperately needed the ability to track where the equipment was needed each day. With some items being limited in number, they needed to plan ahead in order to rent additional equipment if necessary.

Heller began the hunt for an asset tracking solution and found Wasp Barcode Technologies through an online search. Heller was looking for a portable, intuitive solution that would allow multiple people to work with the program and track equipment movement instantly and simultaneously. After participating in a live demo that allowed him to try out Wasp MobileAsset prior to purchase, Heller knew he found the solution that provided all the required features.

“I really liked that I was able to take part in the demo that allowed me to become familiar with the software before purchasing,” says Heller. “We chose Wasp because the program was extremely user friendly for everyone on the staff. Portability was another priority due to the large number of offsite events. With Wasp, we are easily able to pack and transfer our Wasp barcode scanner when taking equipment to offsite events.”

Before Wasp, the crew did not have an accurate record of inventoried equipment. Some of the full time employees had an idea of what was on hand and where it was located, but there was no record or set location for an item that could be referenced by any department member.

Since first implementing Wasp MobileAsset two years ago, the scoreboard production crew has gained an accurate depiction of their assets. They are now able to accurately track their assets at various events both on and offsite. Using Wasp has decreased the possibility of theft of their products as well. A Cardinals labeled barcode is a clear deterrent.

Overall, the Arizona Cardinals scoreboard production department estimates that since using Wasp MobileAsset they have saved 5-20 labor hours per event, which has accumulated to saving 500-1,000 labor hours in the past two years. This time used to be spent manually tracking equipment, double checking what was needed versus what was available, and tracking down misplaced equipment.

“The reliability and accuracy of the product is key. It always works and there is no need for constant software upgrades. Wasp’s barcoding and asset tracking system is a must have item for any major sports team or large production venue,” said Heller.

For help finding the right Asset Tracking Solution for your business, contact us at BarcodesInc.